Rise of the Planet of the Apes (2011) Review

Prequels are the prime example of how the re-telling of a story can be intriguing if told with the right tone and the right material. You know what's going to happen because you had already seen the films that the prequel is supposed to be the predecessor of, but how exactly it happens is what makes it intriguing. Rise of the Planet of the Apes is the kind of prequel where even the people who haven't seen the original films know what's going to happen. I should know, as I have yet to see any of the previous Planet of the Apes films. The apes grow smarter because of some scientific bullcrap, and they go on a rampage and overpower the humans. Regardless of how predictable it is, Rise of the Planet of the Apes is not only intriguing, but also dramatic and inspiring.



The film follows a scientist named Will Rodman, played by James Franco. (Oh, so this is what Harry Osborne did with his father's legacy!) He has come up with a serum called ALZ-112 that repairs any damage done to the human brain. The serum was designed to cure humans of disease, but he tests it on an ape, who shows a huge growth in intelligence. But after that ape goes on a rampage, the company that hired him does not allow him to test it on humans. However, he finds out that the ape was only trying to protect her secret son. Having a soft spot for these animals, he takes the baby home and raises it as his own, naming him Caesar. It turns out that the ALZ-112 has been passed onto the child, and since he has no brain damage to be repaired, his intelligence increases at an incredible rate. However, through some complicated circumstances, Caesar eventually goes on a rampage and gets locked up with many other apes by Animal Control. Seeing how the humans treat the other apes, Caesar eventually sneaks out, steals the ALZ-112 from Will, and exposes the other apes to it so that they can grow more intelligent. He then breaks them all out and leads a rebellion against the humans.


The emotional drama implemented within this story is brilliant to say the least. It may sound silly, but it came off as surprisingly inspirational. Caesar does not attack the humans because he's a wild animal. He attacks them because they act equally as savage as any other animal. They pick on others, they spray the apes down, they electrocute them... Regardless of all that, the apes are the ones that get locked up. It makes one wonder about the actions we take as humans and what kind of right we think we have to take such actions. It's a beautifully established environmental message, and it's told through fantastic direction and some beautiful visuals.


The visual style implemented here is fantastic to say the least. A lot of people were concerned that the use of CGI would kill what the other films were going for, but although I'm not familiar with what effect the original films' effects left, I didn't mind the use of CGI at all. See, even though CGI still has a long way to go to looking as realistic as just a live-action shot, much like anything else with a film, it can be utilized to either develop a fantastic art style or simply tell a story in a way that could not be told with organic effects. I understand that the original films utilized organic effects, but from what I've seen in video clips and snapshots, those apes were in their fully mature stage, while these apes were in their pre-mature stage, so unless you want to see something like Amy from 1995's Congo, you'd best just take what you get. Even the biggest experts in ape training wouldn't be able to get real live apes to do precisely what these CG counterparts did in this film. Once I accepted the fact that the CGI still looks artificial, I came to realize that the actions the apes took told the story well and that the visual style was breathtaking.


The performances are stellar. James Franco is not only more realistic and less stereotypical as the nerdy scientist, but also believable and pretty reserved in his emotions. Although I thought he was pretty weak as Harry Osborne in the Spider-Man films, he's been improving as an actor ever since that finished up. The rest of the human performances are equally as reserved, though not quite as memorable. But by far the best performance comes out of the supposedly motion-captured ape himself, Andy Serkis as Caesar. His facial expressions are the one thing that makes Caesar such an emotionally believable character. I feel the anger building up within him as the humans do more and more ferocious things. Unlike the last big ape he played in Peter Jackson's King Kong, however, this ape is set up to be more human than most, so it makes more sense for him to be more human than animal-istic.


Rise of the Planet of the Apes is spectacular to say the least. While you do know what's going to happen in the story, the way it's told makes it incredibly intriguing. The directorial/visual style is absolutely beautiful, despite the CGI still looking artificial. The performances are stellar, and Andy Serkis sells Caesar as a character. This is a summer hit you will not want to miss. Now, if you'll excuse me, I must find a way to catch the other Planet of the Apes movies.